Thursday, October 30, 2014

Reformation Day - 497th Anniversary

497 years ago (1517) Luther nailed his 95 theses to the Church door sparking the Reformation.

And they that understand among the people
shall instruct many:
yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.
Daniel 11:33

"Since your majesty and your lordships desire a simple reply,
I will answer without horns or teeth.
Unless I am convinced by Scripture and by plain reason
(I do not believe in the authority of either popes or councils by themselves, for it is plain that they have often erred and contradicted each other) in those Scriptures that I have presented,
for my conscience is captive to the Word of God,
I cannot and I will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. 
 Here I stand; I can do no other. God help me. Amen."
Luther, Reply to the Diet of Worms, April 18, 1521
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"Every one of us is, even from his mother's womb, a master craftsman of idols." John Calvin
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The Christian life, then, is a battle, so sharp and full of danger that effort can nowhere be relaxed without loss…”  Zwingli
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"The doctrine preached by Zwingli was not received from Luther. It was the doctrine of Christ. ...said the Swiss Reformer,...... Never has one single word been written by me to Luther, nor by Luther to me. And why? . . . That it might be shown how much the Spirit of God is in unison with itself, since both of us, without any collusion, teach the doctrine of Christ with such uniformity." The Great Controversy p.174 E.G.W.